Repair at Café diem
by Theado
Summary: When he opened his eyes, he was stretched out on the ground and staring up into a sea of worried faces. Teleportation, how had that happened?


"The hypercapacitor ...", suddenly everything blurred before Zane's eyes. He blinked briefly as Henry, Carter and Allison looked at him expectantly, "um, what was I saying?"  
"You were explaining the problem with the Hypercapacitor," helped Henry.  
"What exactly is a ... hypersomething ... ?" Carter asked, wildly gesturing with his hands. Henry turned towards Jack to explain the device as Allison and Zane exchanged an amused look.  
Zane tried to concentrate on his work but an unfortunate run-in with the cabinet earlier had resulted in a buzzing head. The impact must have been harder than he initially thought. The accident only happened because some malfunctioning components startled him with a light zap.  
Wondering about the probable bump, he ran a hand through his hair and felt something wet. He looked at his fingers, which were smeared with red. Quickly he threw a side glance to his three friends at the counter. Fortunately, Henry and Allison were busy in a desperate attempt to bring Carter closer to the apparatus. Zane wiped his fingers on his jeans inconspicuously. The last thing he needed was Allison dragging him to GD with a scratch. He had better things to do than waste time at the hospital.  
Zane took the cover and crawled back under the counter. Cleverly, he fixed the piece of metal back in its original place. He inserted the last screw and crawled out, carefully this time, trying not to bump his head again. As he sat up, he felt a sharp pain in his head. For a moment everything went black as all noises and voices disappeared. When he opened his eyes, he was stretched out on the ground and staring up into a sea of worried faces. Teleportation, how had that happened?

Allison chuckled and took a sip of coffee while she listened to Henry's explanation. Meanwhile, Zane had disappeared under the table with the cover. A distracted Vincent was serving Dr. Parker. Allison knew the oft serious looking scientist from school parent meetings, as Dr. Parker's daughter was in the same class as Kevin.  
As she waved at Dr. Parker, she noticed Zane flinch uncharacteristically out of the corner of her eye. She turned and saw him kneel down. His eyes seemed to fixate eerily at a point on the ground. She knew what would happen next.  
"Zane!" Allison jumped up as his eyes rolled back and he collapsed. She rounded the bar in record time and knelt beside him. Henry and Carter followed closely behind, hovering nearby ready to help. Quick to assess the situation, Allison placed two fingers on his neck. Zane's pulse was rapid but strong.  
"Help me roll him on his back," she instructed the two men. Carefully she cradled Zane's head as Carter and Henry slowly turned him.  
"Ally, he's bleeding," Carter said. She saw a trickle of blood drip slowly out of his black hair and run across his forehead.  
"Oh Zane ..." she murmured, scanning across his head gently with one hand, until she felt the injury. The wound wasn't as wet as she expected; she could feel coagulated blood around the bump under her fingers. "Has he struck his head before?"  
"Not that I noticed," Henry replied.  
"Yes, he did," interrupted Vince. "He knocked it before you all arrived. I asked him about it, but he said he felt fine. Oh God, I shouldn't have let him work after that."  
Allison tried to calm him, "That was not your fault."  
"Yes, you know how stubborn he is, "Carter reassured him.  
"Is there anything I can do?" Vince asked.  
"Yes, I need an ice pack and a glass of water," ordered Allison.  
At that moment, Zane groaned softly. His eyelids twitched, and he frowned as if he were in pain. He blinked and blue glassy eyes looked up at them.  
"Zane? Can you hear me?"  
Slowly his gaze turned to Allison. "What happened?" he murmured.  
"You passed out. Do you remember?" Carefully, she pulled his eyelids apart to test the reaction of his pupils.  
"I don't..." Confused, he looked at the counter under which he had been working. "All I remember is that I wanted to repair the hypercapacitor."  
"That's right. During your repair you struck your head. I suspect you have a slight concussion and would like to take you to GD for further examination."  
"No, no, I'm good. I don't need a hospital. Seriously, I feel better already. "He leaned on his arms and tried to get up to prove it, but as he sat up he swayed and had to close his eyes.  
"Easy, Zane." Jack gently pushed him back on the ground.  
"Do you feel dizzy?" Allison asked as she raised his head so that Jack could slide his jacket underneath as a makeshift pillow.  
"A little," he said between clenched teeth.  
"You are coming to GD with me." He opened his eyes and wanted to speak again, but Allison sharply cut him off. "And I will not argue with you about this."  
"Here is water and the ice." Vincent handed over the glass and the cold compress in a cloth to Jack.  
"Do you think you can sit up?" Allison asked.  
"Yeah," he tried to raise himself up but faltered. Henry and Carter each placed an arm under his shoulders to support him into an upright position against the wall. With his eyes closed, he began to tilt to one side. Henry quickly steadied him.  
"Sorry," he murmured.  
Henry smiled good-naturedly. "Don't worry."  
"Here." Allison raised the glass to his lips and he took a sip before running a hand through his hair.  
"I'm sorry," he mumbled apologetically.  
The ruffled hair and the slightly shamefaced look made the otherwise confident scientist suddenly appear younger. In an assuring gesture Allison laid a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Zane. We will take you to GD and then you can rest." She looked up at Jack.  
"Oh no! Not in my car! What if he suddenly feels sick ? "  
He fell silent as he saw Allison's stern gaze.

After some initial tests, Zane was placed in the care of some capable nurses. Allison had reviewed the results of the scan and was pleased to see no abnormalities, it was just a simple bump on the head.  
The doctor placed the results down and went to check on her patient. But, as she turned the corner, she saw Zane asleep in bed, but, he wasn't alone. Jo sat at his side, holding a cold pack against his head with one hand, while the other stroked his fingers. Allison smiled, as she watched Jo lightly kiss the sleeping scientist on his forehead.  
Quietly, Allison withdrew and left the two alone with the calm assurance that her patient was in good hands.

 _Thanks to JulsKaye for beta reading._


End file.
